While we eagerly await the release of Saint Cole next month, Seattleites and travelers can stop by the Fantagraphics Bookstore to pick up Noah Van Sciver's collection Youth Is Wasted, out last year via AdHouse Books!

Youth Is Wasted compiles several short stories from Van Sciver, some that appeared in his self-published comic book series Blammo, and some published elsewhere, like our very own Mome anthology. Van Sciver's amazing piece 1999 is reprinted here, which first appeared as a mini-comic from Retrofit: I remember reading it on the plane on the way home from a convention back in 2012, and being utterly floored. (No surprise, it was named a "Notable Comic of the Year" in the Best American Comics 2013 anthology.) There are also a few previously unpublished pieces to be found among the pages. Think of it as your Whitman's Samplers of Van Sciver to tide you over 'til you can gorge on Saint Cole.

We've got a few copies left in stock now at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, located at 1201 S. Vale Street in Seattle's Georgetown district. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Call Larry: (206) 658-0110.

James McNew, Bill Frisell, and Jim Woodring!!! Seriously, what more do I need to say?

I've writtenbefore about the creative synergy between our dear Uncle Jim and McNew and his band, Yo La Tengo. They've collaborated before on everything from CD illustrations to tattoos to plastic figurines of the band... yet, somehow, they had never collaborated ON STAGE.

This Sunday, October 5th, this monstruous injustice will be put to rest at Seattle's Town Hall. McNew will be joined by legendary jazz guitarist Bill Frisell, who collaborated with Woodring himself on the (now sold out) 2002 "children's" book, Trosper. Together, these two musical madmen will create catastrophic beauty with an "in-the-moment collaboration."

Inspired by the music, Woodring will create his otherworldly artwork, projected on a screen for everyone to witness unfolding. TL; DR? Simply put, minds will be blown.

Tickets are a ridiculously cheap $5. If ever there were a time to take advantage of the insanity of artists, this is it. Doors open at 6:30 PM, and the Fantagraphics Bookstore crew will have Jim's stunning books in stock. (And Jim reports he'll have some of those limited-edition hard-to-find Yo La Tengo Presspop Dolls with him!)

This once-in-a-lifetime (oh, fine, maybe it'll happen again someday) performance begins at 7:30 PM. The beautiful, historical Town Hall is located at 1119 8th Avenue.

On Saturday, July 19th and Sunday, July 20th, we'll be on-site during the festival's Small Press Book Fair, carrying a handful of our titles alongside some of the self-published mini-comix and zines that we carry at the store.

And this year, The Unknown welcomes special guest Anders Nilsen! Anders will be making a couple of special appearances. Join him on Friday evening, July 18th at Watermark Book Company [ 612 Commercial Ave ] from 4:00 to 5:00 PM, for a free signing.

And then on Saturday and Sunday, Anders will be tabling alongside Fantagraphics at the festival's Small Press Book Fair at The Unknown itself [ 1202 7th Street, upstairs ] from Noon to 4:00 PM.

So, come by, say hi, bring cash, and get some great comics! 3-Day passes are SOLD OUT (which sadly means, you're outta luck to see Anders' dinner-time presentation), but tickets will be sold at all other shows.

It'll be a homecoming for Charles Burns, who went to college at Olympia's Evergreen State College in the mid '70s (along with Lynda Barry and Matt Groening, be still my heart). Stop by his table and have him sign your old copies of Black Hole, inspired by the eerieness of the Pacific Northwest!

And Jesse Reklaw is surely no stranger to our corner of the country, as a former resident of Portland! He'll be signing his beautiful graphic memoir, Couch Tag, among other work!

Both artists will be participating in the Comics Stage Show at the Capitol Theater, in panels at The Olympia Center in the afternoon, and will be signing at Danger Room Comics in the early evening. We'll post the complete schedule as soon as we get it, but in the meanwhile, block out your calendar for the first weekend in June!

This June 12th-14th, get ready to say "velkommen" to Pete at the Schous Plass -- all the fun goes down in the Deichmanske Library at Grünerløkka. (Not only are there fantastic comics and guests, but there's also a bar on the second floor!)

Pete will be signing his latest collection, Buddy Buys a Dump, which contains the last nine issues of Hate Annual and completes the current story arc with a new twenty-page conclusion. You won't want to miss this rare appearance from one of the legends of alternative comics!

Schous Plass is located in the south of the borough of Grünerløkka in Oslo. OCX is free and open to all.

And Dan himself will be there to kick off the show, in conversation with comics scholar Hillary Chute, starting at 7:00 PM in the Mershon Auditorium! This special event is FREE thanks to Art Museum Day, a nationwide initiative of the Association of Art Museum Directors.

Not only will Dan discuss his extensive bibliography, but he'll provide some insight into the accompanying exhibit Eye of the Cartoonist: Daniel Clowes’s Selections from Comics History -- a collection of work by past greats whom he admires or considers influences! Who did he pick? Well, we can tell you both Nancy and Peanuts are in there!

As for his own exhibit, if you haven't seen it yet in its previous stops in Oakland and Chicago, you can feast your eyes on "original black ink and Zipatone drawings of pages from these works, as well as beautifully realized gouache paintings of the covers of Ghost World and other publications... Modern Cartoonist: The Art of Daniel Clowes is the first museum survey of his work, bringing together over 90 pieces of original art and artifacts from the full range of his career."

The Wexner Center for the Arts is located on the Ohio State University campus at 1871 N High Street in Columbus, Ohio. Both exhibits will be on view through August 3rd, but you sure don't want to miss that talk!

The lecture goes from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. This event is FREE and open to the public, however RSVPs are required, so email
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or call 416-979-5000 ext. 7668 today! Refreshments will be served, and books are available for purchase and will be signed by Trina.

We don't mean his band, Guided By Voices -- the indie rock veterans released seven albums just last year, and have at least five new releases planned for 2014... No, we're thrilled to see that among touring and recording, he's still making his gorgeous collage-based artwork, as featured in our 2008 collection Town of Mirrors: The Reassembled Imagery of Robert Pollard!

A few of his pieces are being featured in the exhibit, Chimerical, now on view at the Modified Arts gallery in Phoenix, Arizona -- this group art show is on view through May 10th, with a closing reception on Friday, May 2nd, from 6:00 to 10:00 PM.

This Thursday, April 24th, the Society of Illustrators will host an evening so fun you're sure to plotz!

Get off your tuches andcatch the panel discussion From the Borscht Belt to Seinfeld: The Evolution of Jewish American Comedy, and learn more about how Jewish humor grew out of Yiddish culture, defined New York City's character in the early 20th century, and filtered into our American culture, literature, art, film and television from the 1950's to the present.

The event runs from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. Panelists include our own Drew Friedman, who will be joined by Edward Portnoy, Ph.D, Yiddish language, literature and theater expert who will serve as moderator; Larry Storch, renowned vaudeville, film and TV comedian; Bill Persky, legendary TV sitcom writer; and Tom Leopold, contemporary sketch comedy writer.

A question-and-answer session will follow the panelists' presentations. Shmooze withDrew and Larry afterwards as they sign copies of the Old Jewish Comedians trilogy and limited edition exhibit poster!

And we're also happy to share that Miss will be part of a special edition of R. Sikoryak's celebrated Carousel series! Get ready for laughs on Saturday, April 12th at 5:00 PM. Miss will be reading alongside Dean Haspiel, Danny Hellman, Seth Kushner & Christa Cassano, Kriota Willberg, and, of course, host R. Sikoryak!

Carousel will be held in the Berkeley Oceanfront Hotel [ 1401 Ocean Blvd ], in the lower level of the east side (ocean side) of the first floor in Room F. (Hotel staff refer to it as "The Steinbach Room.")

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